[lcrim]

In my boat, what would you do?
TOm

I would do as I have done. 
You need a pc or a Mac to run Logitech Media Server.   A USB drive that has your music files (ripped or downloaded) on it. This keeps the noise away from the room where you listen.  I would run ethernet cables to this unit and to the Touch @ your stereo.  Wifi is a large source of problems streaming music.
 I would try the Schiit Bifrost DAC as it has asynchronous transfer @ 24/192 on its 2.0 USB port,  the price, fit and finish is also attractive.
Implement the enhanced digital output on the Touch and you  are ready for hidef  playback..  Overall your hardware investment would be in the neighborhood of $800.
Larry

[saisunil]

High end Computer audio these days is so much like vinyl - from babying and tweaking perspective - except that the system that you have now is likely to become obsolete in two years to be surpassed by faster, better and cheaper as computer audio is still in its infancy.

Don't get me wrong - I am in it too and learning slowly ... Very slowly in terms of what I like and how I use it - spinning disks by far has been the easiest for me - may be it is a habit thing (of course iPod / ipad is so much easier)

I had touch for a short period and it just did not work for me from user interface and speed perspective. Pcs and macs have worked much better for me and they do sound better too.

See if you can borrow a USB dac from someone and play with the user interface / usability etc first with whatever Mac you have - that way there is no waste of funds in trying / figuring things out.

Used Mac mini and USB days can be had for cheap - cause someone will lose half their investment - I did   

[Nick77]

I just use my pc laptop with its 500 gig hd to store music files. Squeeze center takes care of the rest and streams wireless and effortlessly to the Touch. It buffers the files and never have any issues or drop outs. Highly reccomend!

[Bigfishhk]

I just use my pc laptop with its 500 gig hd to store music files. Squeeze center takes care of the rest and streams wireless and effortlessly to the Touch. It buffers the files and never have any issues or drop outs. Highly reccomend!

So if I make the comparison to my situation. I have a EE dac plus. I could tether the SB TOUCH to the Dac, and stream files from my iMac via squeeze center,which is about 30ft away from my system?
Is the total cost for this is the cost of the SB TOUCH?

[Bigfishhk]

I would do as I have done. 
You need a pc or a Mac to run Logitech Media Server.   A USB drive that has your music files (ripped or downloaded) on it. This keeps the noise away from the room where you listen.  I would run ethernet cables to this unit and to the Touch @ your stereo.  Wifi is a large source of problems streaming music.
 I would try the Schiit Bifrost DAC as it has asynchronous transfer @ 24/192 on its 2.0 USB port,  the price, fit and finish is also attractive.
Implement the enhanced digital output on the Touch and you  are ready for hidef  playback..  Overall your hardware investment would be in the neighborhood of $800.
Larry

I like the sound of this except that I cannot connect USB to my stereo system or a Touch from my iMac. Physically not possible with the placment of the computer.. That leaves wifi which I am getting very mixed responses on.
On the other hand I have a DAC already. EE MINIMAX DAC PLUS.

[Nick77]

So if I make the comparison to my situation. I have a EE dac plus. I could tether the SB TOUCH to the Dac, and stream files from my iMac via squeeze center,which is about 30ft away from my system?
Is the total cost for this is the cost of the SB TOUCH?

Yep!! I use coax connection from Touch to my DAC since the spdif is know to sound better on my unit. A new Touch software upgrade makes usb from Touch possible if it outperforms your coax connection on your DAC.

[Bigfishhk]

Yep!! I use coax connection from Touch to my DAC since the spdif is know to sound better on my unit. A new Touch software upgrade makes usb from Touch possible if it outperforms your coax connection on your DAC.

OK that's useful feedback. clearly you have achieved something many haven't- a stable wfi connection from computer to SB.
1. do you have any dropout during playback?
2. have you tried streaming large files, eg hi rez files? (I'm guessing you must be streaming at least FLAC sized files?)
thanks
Tom

my system- NAD 545 bee CDP. EE minimax dac+. Krell kav 400xi int amp. Salk song tower speakers. Rythmik f12 sub.

[Bigfishhk]

High end Computer audio these days is so much like vinyl - from babying and tweaking perspective - except that the system that you have now is likely to become obsolete in two years to be surpassed by faster, better and cheaper as computer audio is still in its infancy.

THIS IS THE MAJOR FACTOR THAT HAS KEPT FROM GETTING INTO IT.


I had touch for a short period and it just did not work for me from user interface and speed perspective. Pcs and macs have worked much better for me and they do sound better too.

See if you can borrow a USB dac from someone and play with the user interface / usability etc first with whatever Mac you have - that way there is no waste of funds in trying / figuring things out.
[/quote]

I HAVE THE EASTERN ELECTRIC MINIMAX DAC+. playing it via Macbook pro which I borrowed. I like what I hear though never got my hands on SB Touch.
I am seeing about 50/50 positive comments on SB Touch. the price factor with SB touch is attractive but it's more than just money. I want a good low cost way in that I can build on and which lasts a while. Am not into constant tweaking and upgrading of software and hardware.

Leaves me scratching my head still. though Nick77 is seemingly able to stream well from computer to SB Touch.

 

[lcrim]

I like the sound of this except that I cannot connect USB to my stereo system or a Touch from my iMac. Physically not possible with the placment of the computer.. That leaves wifi which I am getting very mixed responses on.
On the other hand I have a DAC already. EE MINIMAX DAC PLUS.

If I understand you correctly, you don't think you can get an ethernet (network) cable to the Touch.  You can send ethernet over power cables, which is used by some despite the theoretical issue of adding noise to your power lines.  Those that do this have had no problems, however.  You can add a wireless extender to your wifi network and put it near the Touch and run an ethernet cable to the Touch.  I do this in my condo and have never had a dropout. 
You need to learn how to research these things online, BTW.  The knowledge is out there, you need to learn how to use the internet to find it.
Larry
Also, while no one has brought it up, better power for the Touch is a very good thing.  The switch mode power supply included can be improved upon w/ a linear regulated unit, but thats an increased cost that not all agree w/.

[wilsynet]

OK that's useful feedback. clearly you have achieved something many haven't- a stable wfi connection from computer to SB.

This is really a hit or miss proposition for a lot of people because wifi can be a bit hit or miss.  The problem is that people's homes are all different, the quality of wifi routers / access points can vary to a great degree, the distance between the end points at the wifi router will be different, and there may be different levels of interference caused by other wifi networks.

I try to look for wireless routers that are specifically reviewed as having good performance at long range.  For example, the Netgear WNDR3800 N600 and the Asus RT-N66U, which were both reviewed by CNET as having excellent range.  They're more expensive, but there may be other models out there (perhaps previous versions in the same line) that are cheaper.  For example, the Asus RT-56U is quite a bit cheaper, and also has long range.

I'm willing to spend an extra $50 or $100 to minimize the opportunities that I'll tear my hair out wondering why my wireless network isn't working as well as I'd like.  In our audio hobby where cables cost $100, $500, $1000, I think this is well worth the additional investment in wireless.